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We're no. 1! Unfortunately, it's for past-due mortgages.

Article Excerpt
Mississippi is at the top of a list that is troubling news for the state economy. The Magnolia State currently ranks number one in the country in the rate of mortgage payments that are past due.

In the fourth quarter of 2007, Mississippi had 11.07% of loans with installments past due, nearly double the national average of 6.31%. The next highest was Michigan with a delinquency rate of 8.97. Wyoming, North Dakota and Oregon had the lowest rates at about 3%.

Marianne Hill, senior economist for the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning, says delinquency rates in Mississippi are high largely for the same reason they are rising in most of the country: Borrowers in the subprime mortgage market are not able to meet the higher payments as their adjustable rates rise.

"Some lenders were greedy, and engaged in high-risk lending practices," Hill says. "They also failed to properly inform borrowers of the costs they could expect to face down the road. More than 15% of mortgages outstanding in Mississippi are subprime, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, and 11% of mortgage-holders in the state...

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